Red wine, vital weapon against obesity

New Delhi: A compound found in red wine, grapes and other fruits are able to block cellular processes that facilitate fat cells to develop, thus opening the door to a potential method for controlling obesity, a new study has revealed.

According to the Purdue University study, the compound piceatannol is similar in structure to resveratrol - the compound that is thought to combat cancer, heart disease and neurodegenerative diseases.

Resveratrol is converted to piceatannol in humans after consumption.

"Piceatannol actually alters the timing of gene expressions, gene functions and insulin action during adipogenesis, the process in which early stage fat cells become mature fat cells," Kee-Hong Kim, an assistant professor of food science said.

"In the presence of piceatannol, you can see delay or complete inhibition of adipogenesis."

Over a period of 10 days or more, immature fat cells, called preadipocytes, go through several stages to become mature fat cells, or adipocytes.

"These precursor cells, even though they have not accumulated lipids, have the potential to become fat cells," Kim said. "We consider that adipogenesis is an important molecular target to delay or prevent fat cell accumulation and, hopefully, body fat mass gain."

Kim found that piceatannol binds to insulin receptors of immature fat cells in the first stage of adipogenesis, blocking insulin`s ability to control cell cycles and activate genes that carry out further stages of fat cell formation. Piceatannol essentially blocks the pathways necessary for immature fat cells to mature and grow.

Piceatannol is one of several compounds being studied in Kim`s laboratory for its health benefits, and it is also present in different amounts in red grape seeds and skin, blueberries, passion fruit, and other fruits.

Kim would like to confirm his current finding, which is based on a cell culture system, using an animal model of obesity.

"We need to work on improving the stability and solubility of piceatannol to create a biological effect," Kim added.